Improvement in windmills



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN M. MAY, OF JANESVILL, WISCONSIN.

IMPROVEMENT IN WINDMHILLS.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 22,965, dated February15, 1859.

ATo all whom t may concern,.-

Be it known that I, JOHN M. MAY, of Janesville, in the county of Rockand State of WVisconsin, have invented a new and useful Improvement inConstructing Windmills and in Regulating and Controlling the Same; and Ido hereby declare that the following isafull, clear, and exactdescription of the same, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part of this specification, the same letters ofreference indicating the same parts in each figure.

The nature of my invention consists in the peculiarlyconstructedstationary central vertical shaft, in combination with lthepeculiarly-constructed hollow tubular shaft or col umn placed over andrevolving freely around it.' This central column is so formed that itserves as axes for the axle of the wind-Wheel and the tubular column torevolve upon in the path of horizontal circles and serving also as asupport and guide for the entire structure, while the tubular columnserves for receiving power from the Wind-wheel and transmitting it tomachinery, whereby is obviated the necessity of any frame-work Whateverto support the wind-wheel.

It consists, second, in forming the axle of the wind-wheel with ashoulder in the form of a hub or pipe box to receive the upper end ofthe vertical shaft as an axis and bearing for the horizontal revolutionsof the windwheel, the center of the axes of the shaft and axleintersectingand furnishing in themselves central axes and bearingsinside of the angle of the gear-wheels on the vertical shaft andhorizontal axle, the shaft and axle also serving as axes and bearingsfor the gear-wheel,

enabling them to operate freely with each each other as the wind-wheelis revolved to different points of the compass as the wind changes, andthezuse of a turn-table outside of the gear-wheels lwholly obviated.

It consists, third, in providing a governingrod (steadied by aguide-bar) forked at its upper end to Iit the horizontal groove in asliding thimble on the vertical column and the lower end jointed toaphorizontal lever (that may be Weighted) for controlling and regulatingthe wind-wheel.

It consists, fourth, in providing a conical covering for the mechanismin the wind-Wheel head to protect it from the elements and divide theWind-current and guide it onto the sails, and to protect the governorsfrom the countervailing influence of the wind-current in regulating thevelocity of the wind-wheel.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willproceed to describe its construction and operation.

Figure l is a perspective drawing of a mill ready for use, butwithoutthe covering or roofing to protect the mechanism, and for otherpurposes, as seen in Figs. 2 and 6. a vertical section on a planethrough the axes of the vertical shaft and horizontal axle. Fig. 3 is adetail drawing of the groove-thimble, showing their connection with thedoubleforked elbow-lever. Figs. -t and 5 are sections of parts of thevertical shaft and horizontal axle that take the place of or serveinstead of a turn-table and furnish bearings for the gear-wheels, andFig. 6 is a perspective view of the conical covering detached from themachine. l

A in Figs. l and 2 is the center part or column, the Alower end of whichis made firm to a beam, timber, or pedestal U, and has a shoulder b ator near its base, which serves as a vertical and horizontal bearing forthe tubular shaft or column to rest and revolve upon. Toward the upperend of the shaft A and a short distance above the top of the tubularcolumn is another shoulder-bearing A et, formed on the shaft A, abovewhich the shaft still extends and serves as a vertical axis for thehorizontal axle for the Windwheel, and on which shoulder and axis theaxle of the wind-wheel rests and revolves.

B is a tubular or hollowr column fitting easily over the "center shaftAand has its lower bearing at b. The vertical position of this bearing`on the center shaft extends up-' ward a short distance, sufficient tomeet the lateral pressure and friction of a drum bandwheel orgear-wheels in attaching to other machinery. Thence upward there is aspace between the shaft A and tubular column B unt-il near and at thetop of the column a bevel cog gear-wheel is fastened to the tubularcolumn, where there is a vertical bearing i on the shaft A to meet thefriction caused by the gear-wheels. Thus the tubular column is caused torun lightly as it revolves around the center shaft A. This tubularcolumn receives motion from the wind-wheel by gearwheels at or near itskupper end and communicates it by band or gear wheels near its lower endor at any point along its length.

C is a horizontal axle formed with a tubebox c and fits easily thevertical axis cl, formed of the upper part of the shaft A, and rests andrevolves on the shoulder -bearing a. The front part of this axle formsthe arm or axis on which the wind-wheel revolves, and the rear part ofthis axle is formed into a stem f of the vane -W, which guides thewind-wheel to the wind-current as the wind changes to different pointsof the compass. This axle also has a projection H, which serves as afulcrum and support for the doubleforked elbowlever I, the uses of whichwill presently appear.

The should a being a little distance above `the column B, both the axleC and-column B revolve around the shaftA with perfect freedom andindependently of each other.

rlhe wind-wheel itself is composed mainly of the pipe-box N, hub K, andhead J, which are built firmly together. On the end of the pipe-boxopposite the head J the gear cogwheel E is fastened. The other parts ofthe wind-wheel are'the elbows L, with one arm O bearing thegovernor-balls P and the other arm forming the stems of the sails M, andalso serve as radial axes in revolving' the sails in their bearings inthe hub K and head J, the elbows being-connected to the sliding thimbleF by the bars V, which are vjointed to each. This thimble fits thepipe-box N easily, and, as it is moved back and forth, revolves thesails on their respective stems; also, on the end next to the cog-wheelthis thimble has a groove around its circumference to receive the curvedpoints of the vertical arm of the elbow-lever I.

G is another thimble fitting easily around the tubular shaft B, on whichit is moved vertically, having two grooves around its circumference, oneto receive the curved points ofthe horizontal arm of the elbow-lever andthe other to receive the forks on the upper end of governing-rod Q,which rod is jointed at its lower end to the horizontal lever S andsteadied by the guide-bar R.

I is an angularor elbow lever forked at each extremity, the forksfitting the grooves easily in the respective thimbles F and G, and ishinged and supported at its angle by the projection H, extending fromthe axle C. It will now appear that the means of communicating governingpower freely without binding or oblique bearing between the horizontaland vertical shafts is by the thimbles F and .G and this two-forkedlever, the thimble `F being connected with the sails and the thimble Gwith the horizontal lever S, by which lever S the sails can be revolvedon .their stems, so as to present any desired degree of Obliquity to thewind-current, or held in any desired position independently of thecentrifugal governing power of the balls P; or, if the lever S is leftfree, the balls P furnish a selfregulating power, which may be aided byweighting the lever S.

The power of the wind-wheel is communicated to the tubular column B bythe cog gear-wheels E on the pipe-box N operating the cog-wheel D on thetubular column.

Figs. 4 and 5 are sections of the center shaft A and axle C, showing thecompact and simple device that takes the place of the broadsurfacedturn-tables in use for revolving the axes or shafts of wind-wheels inhorizontal circles.

The enlargement of the axle C at its shoulder into the form of a hub orpipe-box c is so that the axis d of the shaft A may pass up directlythrough it, whereby the center of the axes of the shaft A and axle Cintersect and in themselves form vertical and horizontal center bearingsinside of the angle of the coggear wheels D and E at the same time thatthe shaft A serves as a vertical bearing for the upper end of thetubular column B, to which is fastened the gear-wheel D, and the axle Cis so formed that it serves as the axis e for the pipe-box N of thewind-wheel to revolve upon, to which pipe-box the gear-wheel Eisfastened, the gear-wheels operating together freely as the wind-wheel isrevolved horizontally in different directions. Thus two pieces, compactand durable, fitted together inside of or within the angle formed by thegear-wheels, and requiring no frame-work whatever to support them,entirely supersede the turn-tables composed of many parts supported by aframe-work and liable to be out of repair and out of true.

Whatl claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is*- vl. The peculiarly constructed stationary central vertical shaft A,in combination with the peculiarly-constructed revolving tubular shaftor hollow column B, the shaft A providing axes for the wind-wheel andthe tubular column B to revolve upon in the paths of horizontal circlesand serving as a support and guide of the structure of the wind-wheel,and the tubular column B serving for receiving the power of thewind-wheel and transmitting it to machinery, substantially as .setforth.

2. Enlarging the axle C at its shoulder in the form of a hub or pipe-boxc, that the axis cl of the shaft A may pass up directly through it, sothat the center of the axes of the shaft A and axle C intersect and inthemselves form vertical and horizontal center bearings within the angleformed by the gear-wheels D and E, and the shaft A and axle C also serveas bearings for the gear-wheels, substantially as and for the purposesset forth.

3. The combination of the horizontal lever S, the vertical governing rodor bar Q, guidebar R, and thimble Gon the tubularcolumn, substantiallyas and forthe Ipurposes set forth.

4. The employment of a revolving conical cover for the purposes ofprotecting the mechanism of the wind-Wheel and dividing the Wind-currentat the front and center of the Wind-Wheel head and guiding it upon thesails and relieving the Weighted elbow-levers used for revolving thesails on their radial `axes of the countervailng influence of thewind-current, so as to enable them to act by centrifugal force withcertainty in governing the velocity of the Wind-Wheel, substantially asset forth.

JOHN M. MAY.

Witnesses:

JAS. H. BIRCH, ROBT. W. FENWICK.

